Nicholas Wayne Hamlett
An armed and dangerous man is being sought after another man was found dead in Monroe County.
Monroe County E-911 Center received a transferred call on Friday, at approximately 11:34 p.m., from the Polk County E-911 Center in reference to a distressed hiker, claiming to be a Brandon Andrade. He advised the dispatcher that he had fallen off of a cliff while running from a bear. The distressed caller claimed that he was injured and partially in the water. The call had been pinged in the area of the Charles Hall bridge on the Cherahola Skyway in Tellico Plains.
Emergency services responded to the area and set up a command center.
Search and rescue teams from various agencies responded and a search of the area was conducted. A deceased man had been located with an identification of Brandon Kristopher Andrade on his persons. The man was transported to the Knox County Regional Forensic Center.
Detectives with the Monroe County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigation Division and the Monroe County Violent Crime Task Force reviewed the scene and after further investigation, determined that the deceased subject was not Brandon Andrade and that the identification had been stolen and used on multiple occasions. Furthermore, a man who was using the stolen identification of Andrade, was discovered to be a Nicholas Wayne Hamlett, who was wanted out of the state of Alabama on a parole violation.
Hamlett had used a false name when speaking with law enforcement in Knox County, after the distressed hiker call. Before his real identity had been verified, Hamlett was believed to have fled from his Tennessee residence.
The Monroe County Sheriff 's Office, along with the Monroe County Violent Crime Task Force, have been diligently working with criminal investigators from the 10th Judicial District Attorney's Office, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Knox County Sheriff's Office, Knoxville Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and other agencies in locating information on the deceased man subject and the location of Hamlett.
At this time, the deceased man has not been identified, and is being referred to as John Doe. Special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation are currently working to develop a sketch of John Doe to be released publicly for the purpose of identification. The incident is still under investigation, and further information will be released at a later time.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Hamlett for first-degree murder out of Monroe County, Tn. Hamlett is considered armed and dangerous. If you see Hamlett, call 911 or Monroe County Dispatch at 423 442-4357. If you have any information related to this incident, please contact the Monroe County Sheriff's Office at 423 442-3911.